In addition, the police confiscated 370 illegal decoders from both shops, leading to the arrest of two people. The cases are likely to be referred to the Economic Courts.

One of the largest hauls of piracy equipment in Egypt, the Alexandria raid is the fifth in the country – and the first in the city – following the campaign launched by OSN to curb the menace of TV piracy that negatively impacts the country’s television and creative industry.

The Alexandria raid is significant in that one of the illegal operators was also exporting illegal decoders to other countries. OSN has filed complaints against the company in other countries where these decoders were being sold.

Nader Genidy, general manager of the Alexandria Police, said: “We are taking a very stringent view on TV piracy and will take strong action against illegal TV operators. We look forward to the cooperation of the public in this regard, as they must realise that accessing TV content from unauthorised vendors or through unofficial means is illegal. Encouraging it will cause damage to our nation’s creative industry and our television industry.”

For the raid, Alexandria police deployed more than 16 police officers and two Lieutenants. The general manager congratulated the team for their dedicated efforts including Sheref Abdelhamed, the manager of Alexandria Police and Kaled Abdelhady, the manager of Anti-piracy at the Alexandria Police.

David Butorac, CEO of OSN, said: “We admire the commitment of Alexandria Police and Egyptian authorities in taking sustained and firm action against TV piracy, and thank them for their dedication and stern action. The illegal operators are doing a great disservice to Egypt, a nation with a rich creative legacy. They are also deceiving the public by providing them unreliable and low-quality content that is accessed illegally. A zero-tolerance approach to TV piracy is important to build the country’s creative industry.”

The first raid in Egypt took place in Cairo, where two men were arrested leading to the confiscation of illegal TV decoders, local area connector converters, and IPTV software with flash memory cards. Subsequently there have been three more raids – one in Mansoura and two in Tanta where pirate decoders were seized.

Pay-TV network OSN has been championing the anti-piracy drive in the country with close cooperation and support from the authorities. Similar raids have taken place across the GCC with several shops closed down and illegal operators arrested.